"THE SHADOW WORLD OF GERMANY’S SPIES - HOW MUCH INTELLEGENCE DOES GERMANY NEED?"

A VENTANA FILM / TUESDAY, JULY 19TH, 2016 at 8:15 PM on ARTE and WEDNESDAY, July 27TH 2016 at 10:45 PM on Das Erste (90 MIN).

The Federal Intelligence Service of Germany (BND) has been secretly monitoring others for over 60 years. This documentary investigates the spies, their superiors and the role of the parliament.

It is a gigantic secret agency: the BND employs thousands of officials with fake names and false passports to obtain foreign state secrets. But the BND is in a deep crisis of confidence. One listening scandal after another has shaken the service.

President Gerhard Schindler’s recent resignation from his position is startling. He was the first BND president to admit that his service had gone too far. In an exclusive interview for this film, Schindler says: "I think the discussion about the federal intelligence service that is currently taking place about its powers as well as its limits is long overdue (…) an effective monitoring would not harm us, but benefit us."

Members of parliament set out to inspect whether the German spies adhere to the Basic Law and openly admit in “The Shadow World of the German Spies” that the mission has failed.

What does the BND do? What role does it play in politics and where should the limits for the intelligence service be? The authors pursue these questions and find fascinating answers.

A production of Ventana-Film Berlin in co-production with SWR, RBB, DW, in cooperation with ARTE.